As the country’s representative body of the alcoholic beverage industry, The Sense Group has always taken serious note of any emerging, scientifically solid research findings that shed more light on how alcohol affects us humans.

The recent Global Burden of Disease study has become all the rage among those who tend to take a hard-line approach to alcohol consumption.

In effect, however, all this study really does is highlight the fact that if alcohol is consumed beyond moderate levels, which according to UK guidelines is two units a day, the levels of ‘safety’ decrease considerably.

If one interprets this as proving that the only way not to develop several diseases is by abstaining from alcohol, then it obviously raises the alarm unnecessarily.

A recent article in The Sunday Times of Malta (‘Treat alcohol like tobacco, lobbyist urges policy makers’, August 26) stated that “we cannot talk of safe amounts of alcohol but of lower risk amounts”. This is like saying that “crossing the road is not safe, but it’s less risky on a zebra crossing”. Sure, look both ways before you cross, before you step across those white lines, but you may cross. 

Moderate consumption of alcohol is the ‘zebra crossing’ for those who wish to enjoy a well-balanced lifestyle. It does not mean that there are no risks involved. One consumes in the knowledge that one is in control and accepts a very limited risk for one’s health.

David Spiegelhalter, a statistician for The Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication at Cambridge, found that the Lancet study showed negligible increased real numbers of risk incidence for moderate drinkers.

“Claiming that there is no ‘safe’ level does not seem an argument for abstention,” he has been quoted as saying. “There is no safe level of driving, but governments do not recommend that people avoid driving… Come to think of it, there is no safe level of living, but nobody would recommend abstention… Presumably, people who choose to drink alcohol moderately get some pleasure from it, and any risk needs to be traded off against this enjoyment.”

Underage alcohol consumption

It is a fact that underage drinking is of primary concern in all countries and not exclusively in Malta. Some countries, such as Georgia, Estonia, Greece and the Czech Republic, have a much worse picture.

This does not mean it is all fine for us but emphasises the need to focus on specific problem target groups and not the whole market, which includes moderate drinkers. At the Sense Group, our efforts to curb underage consumption have been direct and unwavering through our website drinkawaremalta.com and our current ‘Take Control’ campaign.

One consumes in the knowledge that one is in control and accepts a very limited risk for one’s health

With regard to raising the drinking age from 17 to 18 years of age, one has to understand that the higher the age limit is moved, as was done just a few years ago from 16 to 17, the more underage drinking trends will emerge.

If it’s very difficult to enforce the prevention of alcohol consumption among 16-year-olds, one cannot imagine one would be successful with 17-year-olds.

Do we truly believe that young adults would not be able to find their way to an alcoholic beverage if they wish to? As in many countries, problems like buying “by proxy”, where underage kids get older friends or siblings to buy alcohol for them, will also increase.

Enforcement is key to administering the existing law. Our group contributed to the drafting of The National Alcohol Policy in 2016 which we hope to see put into practice soon. Our industry members make a self-regulated undertaking not to promote excessive consumption and are focusing more on premium alcoholic propositions that invite quality rather than quantity of consumption.

Alcoholic beverage pricing

In terms of overall alcohol consumption, Malta ranks way below many countries, at under eight litres per capita of pure alcohol consumed annually compared to the European average of 11.3 litres. Countries where the average is much higher increasingly demand stronger actions, including imposing minimum unit pricing as a proposed solution.

Aside from the fact that this unjustly affects the majority of consumers who drink alcohol responsibly, it may make cheap alcohol less attractive. But if ineffective, what will be the answer? A drink in a bar is normally priced at two to three times the price of alcohol from a retail outlet, making underground consumption that much more enticing to youths.

The longer-lasting solutions have proven to be education and cultural efforts for moderation in all things consumed, with consistent educational efforts that give results over time, not knee-jerk initiatives that only please the impulsive need for action.

The editorial of The Sunday Times of August 19 stated that “over the last four years some important aspects of abusive alcohol use among teenagers have declined”. A major reason for this has surely been the continuous messages conveyed to youth over the last two decades from all the social, educational and industry initiatives that have taken place.

The industry’s mission

The pledge made by the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking is a statement that The Sense Group finds consistent with its efforts:

“We are committed to encouraging responsible choices about alcohol. Many choices in life carry potential risks and benefits. While some people choose not to drink, health authorities in many countries have developed drinking guidelines to provide guidance on moderate consumption. We believe that for adults of legal drinking age who choose to drink, moderate alcohol consumption can be part of a well-balanced lifestyle.”

Ray Grech is director general of The Sense Group.